A mother's heart
by VerMa
Summary: A growing collection of one-shots. Without dramatic plot twists (as of yet) but with a, hopefully consistent, supplement to Gaia's back story and to her relationship with the Planeteers.
1. Goldilocks

**Hello!**

**Those who know me as a "Scooby Doo" fanfic author, are entitled to wonder why I publish a story in another fandom, and why it's not even a crossover with my beloved cartoon. ;) Well, I watched the "Captain Planet" show as a kid, but actually discovered it only a few months ago.**

**My favorite character of the series is Gaia, who's not just the Planeteers' mentor, but quite simply their mother figure. Unfortunately, although she's an important character, without whom the show's action wouldn't have even begun, not much is known about her past, motivation and attitude towards humanity. Luckily, that's where imagination comes in handy. :D**

**I started creating this fic on impulse, having a mental image of the scene where the sleeping Linka thinks it's her mom who's with her... and then it just kept going. To be honest, it ended up longer than I planned, but I think the end result still is pretty good.**

**Enjoy,**

**VerMa.**

* * *

It was around midnight. Planeteers, tired by yet another busy day, were long since asleep. Only in Linka's bedroom, the light was still on. Led by a mixture of curiosity and concern, Gaia went inside without opening the door.

Linka slept in an armchair put near a tall floor lamp. In her hands, she was clutching a needle with thread, and her shirt, which she hadn't managed to repair fully before falling asleep. Taking everything out of the girl's hands, Gaia moved her onto the bed; she did it so delicately that Linka didn't even stir. Having covered her Planeteer with a blanket, Gaia stroked her blond hair and kissed her forehead.

"Children are adorable when they're asleep" – she thought.

Then Linka's soft, warm hand closed on Gaia's.

"Я тебя очень люблю, мама" the girl muttered, not waking up. (_I love you very much, Mom._)

"А она очень любит тебя, Линка. И я тоже" Gaia whispered. "Спокойной ночи" she added, and slid her hand out of Linka's grasp. (_And she loves you very much, Linka. And so do I. Good night._)

Then, she rewove the ripped shirt with a single gesture, turned off the lamp and soundlessly left through the closed door.

She still couldn't believe how quickly she'd gotten used to the Planeteers' presence on Hope Island. After all, they were human children, and she'd been trying to avoid any contact with this species since... since the incident with Zarm. Because of him, people had become disobedient and arrogant, plus they'd learned making war and killing animals for entertainment. It hurt her all the more that she'd come to like them; they were rather weak creatures, but more intelligent than others, so she'd thought they'd help her look after the Earth. It turned out otherwise. And even though Captain Planet had helped her to defeat and banish Zarm, the human nature remained corrupted.

That was why she'd settled on a self-made island, which she'd named Crystal, and which the people were never to find. But when they began crossing the seas and oceans, some of them lost their boat during a storm near the island. Gaia felt sorry for them, so she took them to the shore, provided them with fruit and allowed them to cut down some trees to build a raft, to make a supply of water and shoot a few animals, so they'd have something to eat. Actually, she'd even be willing to let them stay, as they treated her with the utmost respect, and besides, she couldn't be inhospitable to the beings that had given the Crystal Island the beautiful name of Hope Island. Unfortunately, one day, one man discovered the crystals, which she used to watch over the planet, and began collecting them avidly. At that point, for fear of others following his lead, she banished them all off the island. After that incident, she moved to the Crystal Chamber under the bottom of the shelf, surrounding the island.

She started to warm up to the humankind again only when her Lord assured her He'd forgiven them all the evil they had and would commit because of Zarm, and that now everything depended on them. Nevertheless, she still didn't really trust them and, to be honest, she was a bit afraid of them; she saw how they treated nature and one another. The recklessness of Europeans and Americans frightened her the most. Although she tried to remove its effects, over time it only got more difficult. Finally, at the end of the nineteenth century, people had polluted the environment so much that she no longer had the energy to clean up after them; she needed a moment of rest.

She didn't sleep long – only a century later, she was woken up by the effects of a certain Hoggish Greedly's actions. A quick check of the mankind's recent activity revealed that the Earth was in a critical condition. At that point, Gaia realized that no matter how she tried, she wouldn't be able to fix the situation single-handedly. The only option left was to get people, most preferably young, to save the planet from the consequences of their own carelessness. Thus, she sent out into the world five rings, giving partial control over chosen powers of nature. Before they disappeared, she'd noticed that on each of them, its future owner's name flickered briefly.

At first, she'd intended to keep the Planeteers at bay and not meddle too much into their lives. However, the very first words Wheeler had uttered to her, made her doubt her decision; and later, looking into the five teenagers' eyes, full of eagerness despite the initial confusion, Gaia completely changed her mind about her role in their lives. Of course, she was aware that as human beings, even those children weren't without flaws, but she also knew that they actually had their hearts in the right place.

She quickly realized she cared about them a lot more than it would be expected from her as a mentor. She reasoned with herself that they were still young, and therefore in need of care, especially the little Ma-Ti. Soon, however, everything changed once again. Zarm came back, misled four older Planeteers and tried to trick them to start a war. Gaia knew she had to save them; she was even willing to risk her life (and was really close to losing it!), just to free them from Zarm's influence.

She didn't tell this all to them openly. She didn't have to; she saw in their eyes that they'd more or less understood what had made her act like that. Later, when Captain Planet had sent Zarm far into outer space, and Planeteers had returned to Hope Island, Gaia demanded the five of them come to see her. Ma-Ti was anxious, and the others terrified. Having taken a quick look into their hearts, she found out they'd been expecting her to tell them off harshly. She didn't – it wasn't their fault that they'd had no idea what Zarm was really like. She simply reached out and hugged them; and then, she experienced something that had never happened before. Five hearts almost simultaneously sent her a simple message: "Mom".

Since then, she couldn't imagine a life without "her" children. By day, she watched them play and have friendly competitions, told them various (sometimes a bit embroidered) stories based on what she'd seen in crystals, while looking at the past, listened to their laughter and teasing at meals, healed their burns, cuts, broken noses, bruised knees and hurt feelings. By night, she divided her time between the slow but sure restoration of the environment wherever it was possible, silent watching over the sleeping Planeteers and, if necessary, repairing their ripped clothes, like she'd done tonight with Linka's shirt.

She reckoned that someday, all the five of them would grow up and start their own families, but for now, she was their mother, and her island was their home. She didn't know how long it would last; she didn't want to know. She was, however, certain of one thing – whatever happened, these kids would always have a special place in her heart.

* * *

**PS – Feedback will be appreciated.**

**VM**


	2. Jimmy

**Hello!**

**I'm horrible. Really. I should continue writing my bachelor thesis, and yet, I'm thinking of a new chapter for "Codename: FAMILY"... and along the way, I've managed to make a second one-shot of "Gaia and the Planeteers" series. Oh, well. Stuff happens.**

**While the previous one-shot only alluded to different episodes (mostly to "A Hero for Earth", "The Conqueror" and "Hog Tide"), this one is set shortly after "Two Futures". After an umpteenth watching of this (double) episode, I realized one thing: there's NO WAY that Wheeler wouldn't be haunted by what he saw in the apocalyptic version of the future, at least for some time. And there's no way Gaia wasn't aware of it; and that led me to the conclusion that if she hadn't left Mr. Cozy-Life alone after his argument that others could save the Earth, she had to have some other reasons, about which she didn't want to talk.**

**Okay, enough theory. Enjoy!**

**VerMa**

* * *

_The distance from the wharf to Gaia's hut wasn't long. To Wheeler, however, it seemed that making it took him ages. When he finally reached his destination, he saw a terrible picture._

_ Almost the entire interior was cluttered up with toxic waste containers; some of them seeped their contents out to the floor. Amidst this whole mess, the boy saw a dark-haired, dark-skinned figure in a long, purple dress; she lay face down on the ground and wasn't moving._

_"Gaia!" Wheeler screamed, terrified._

_ He had no idea how he'd gotten at her side; however, when he took her in his arms, he saw that the muscles of her face, contorted with pain, were still trembling. Suddenly, Gaia lifted her eyelids, gripped his elbow tightly and looked him straight in the eyes._

_"You're too late" she whispered with effort and hung limply from his arms._

_ Having grabbed her wrist, the boy found out her heart was no longer beating. Plagued by remorse and utterly heartbroken, he started to cry, clasping the dead Gaia to his chest._

x

After a while, Wheeler realized he was sitting in his own bed, crying on the shoulder of someone who held him in their arms and gently stroked his hair.

"It's all right, don't cry" said a soft, soothing voice. "That was just a bad dream."

Looking up, the boy met the gaze of two kind, blue eyes.

"Ga-Gaia?" he stammered. "B-but how did you...?"

"I heard you scream" came the answer. "You've dreamed of what you'd seen in Doctor Blight's Time Pool, haven't you?"

"H-how do you know?"

"I sensed it" Gaia explained simply. "Come to the Crystal Chamber; I have something to show you" she added and disappeared.

x

"I owe you an apology and a rectification" Gaia said as soon as Wheeler entered the Crystal Chamber. A bit insecure tone of her voice and the fact that she didn't even turn away from the Planet Vision gave away she felt guilty.

"I don't know what you mean" the confused boy admitted.

"This" Gaia replied, reaching out towards the big crystal, serving as the screen; a moment later, it showed fragments of the dystopian future.

Wheeler shuddered at the memory of this trip and the nightmare that resulted from it. However, not wanting Gaia to see it, he resorted to sarcasm.

"Yeah... that was one effective shock therapy. Why are you coming back to this?"

Gaia sighed softly, sat on a mat, spread on the floor, and looked at her oldest Planeteer.

"We need to talk seriously. Sit down next to me" she almost whispered. "What you saw in the Time Pool" she added hesitantly, when the boy obeyed "was... not the whole truth."

"So you lied to me to make me come back to the Planeteers?" Wheeler exclaimed, shocked and a bit angry.

Gaia raised her hands defensively and shook her head.

"Don't jump to conclusions, my boy. I never said it was all a lie."

"Then what was it?"

"The worst-case scenario."

"The worst-case?"

"Yes. It assumed you refused to accept the ring repetitively until it was too late."

"So if I'd refused it, you'd have sent the ring to me again after some time?"

Gaia nodded.

"I'd have tried every day for half a year."

"Only half a year?" Wheeler was surprised.

Gaia winced slightly and made a little gesture towards the Planet Vision.

"Look at this" she whispered.

The boy slightly narrowed his eyes and, tilting his head, looked at the hardly identifiable, bloody mass.

"What's this?" he asked after a moment.

"Your body" Gaia replied softly. "In the world that you created by rejecting the ring, one day your counterpart let some of his friends talk him into a silly game of crossing the street just before the car hoods. As you can see, it ended tragically for him."

"But what exactly...?"

"He fell and died under the wheels of an oncoming truck."

For a moment, they both were quiet. In the end, Gaia said:

"To be honest, at first I wanted to respect your decision and find someone to take your place, but..."

"But what?"

"The owner of the Fire Ring must combine physical strength, agility, courage, a clever mind and a kind heart. Contrary to what you may think, it happens quite rarely."

"You mean...?"

"If you'd rejected the ring, the next man like you wouldn't have been born until twenty years later. He wouldn't have been mature enough to use the power entrusted to him until the age of seventeen."

Wheeler frowned slightly.

"Hold it" he said after a moment. "If my calculations are correct, by this time, Hope Island would've been destroyed, and you..." at this point, he felt a lump form in his throat.

"It's true" Gaia admitted.

"So this means that now I'll have to go on actions for almost forty more years?"

Gaia smiled slightly.

"No. As a Planeteer, you're an example for others, so there's a high probability that your successor will show up earlier."

"So that's why you wanted me to come back? So Earth wouldn't die?"

"Not really. What I wanted much more was to save you from the fate you'd have met if you hadn't reversed everything."

"But why do you care about me?" the boy inquired, looking into his mentor's eyes. "You know how often I say or do things that annoy others, especially Linka. At times, I even feel I simply don't belong with them" he added after a moment. "Why did you choose me of all people?"

Gaia shook her head.

"It wasn't I that chose you and the other Planeteers" she explained. "When I was sending the rings to you, your names appeared on them."

"Just like that?" Wheeler snapped his fingers.

"Just like that. I had no control over this."

"Strange" the boy pointed out. "You're the most powerful being on Earth, aren't you?"

"But not in the Universe" Gaia replied patiently. "True, I can do things impossible for humans; but the influence that I have is but a tiny part of the power of the One who created the whole universe and all the living beings, including you and me. It was He that made the entire plan with the rings and Captain Planet after..." at this point, she paused.

"After what?" Wheeler asked curiously.

"After Zarm had ruined everything" Gaia replied softly.

"But what did he do?"

Gaia winced and shook her head.

"These are very unpleasant memories I'd rather not talk about. Besides, it's time you went back to bed, Jimmy."

Wheeler was so surprised that for a while, he was unable to say anything.

"That's how my parents talked to me when I was little" he uttered at last. "It was before my dad started to..."

"I know" Gaia admitted. "When you were entrusted to me, I traced the past of each one of you."

"But why?"

"To understand you. To know the sources of your fears and uncertainties. To be able to advise you and soothe your sorrow, pain and grief, when you need it."

Her voice was calm and melodious. It resembled the sound of the flute, on which Linka imitated the bird songs. Wheeler had more and more trouble with paying attention; at one point, despite himself, he even closed his eyes and gave a yawn. Still, he'd later be willing to bet that Gaia, before pulling him into her lap, had turned into a giantess. Nothing else could explain why all of a sudden he felt small like a young kid.

"You know, Gaia? You're pretty cool" he muttered, fighting the sleepiness, overwhelming him. "But..."

"But what?"

"Don't use ma-a-a-a-aye... real name... 'round... the others..."

"I won't. Earth Spirit's honor" Gaia promised.

Hearing a light snoring in reply, she cuddled her sleeping Planeteer a bit tighter, smiling with contentment. He wasn't perfect, just like her four other protégés; and yet, she wouldn't trade him for anyone else. From the snippets of the future that she'd been allowed to see, she'd concluded he'd have an important mission to fulfill in adulthood. True, she didn't (yet) know what this new mission would be about, but she was sure that if Wheeler didn't lose his youthful energy, she wouldn't have to worry for him too much.

"Sweet dreams, Jimmy" she whispered at last, burying her nose into his red hair for a brief moment, and gently waved her hand, sending the boy back to his bedroom.

* * *

**Next up will be a Ma-Ti-centered one-shot. I'll upload it when I have some free time.  
**

**Meanwhile, feedback will be welcome. Typos? Misused words? Grammar or punctuation errors? Let me know. :)**

**VM**


	3. The darling boy

**Hi there!**

**Recently, I've just happened to get the inspiration to write - both my thesis (which, thankfully, I've almost finished) and fanfics. :)**

**As I announced at the end of the previous ficlet, this time I focused on Gaia's relationship to the youngest Planeteer – Ma-Ti. I have to admit that their bond, visible from the first episode, immediately won my heart. It made finding the right words to describe their love, affection and trust, not an easy job. On the other hand, I didn't want to make the whole thing too fluffy and sweet... so I've added Captain Planet to the mix. :D**

**This one-shot is set directly after "The Big Clam-Up".**

**Enjoy!**

**VerMa**

* * *

After tucking Kwame in with a blanket as thoroughly as she could, Gaia headed towards Ma-Ti's hut. She'd been doing so for a time long enough for it to become her routine. She watched over the Planeteers not only by day, when they were either saving the Earth or filling Hope Island with laughter and hubbub, but also at night, especially if any of them was sick. Tonight, luckily, nothing disturbed her four elder children's sleep, even though only a few hours earlier, Skumm had tried to force them to eat the contaminated seafood. The incident's only side effect was that none of them was able to eat dinner.

At the thought that for thousands of years, she hadn't wanted to deal with humans, she smiled and shook her head. It was unbelievable how quickly these children had turned her life upside down. In the past, Captain Planet and the animals inhabiting Hope Island had been enough to keep her company. Now, though, she felt lonely when the Planeteers were away, stopping yet another eco-disaster.

She was about to look into Ma-Ti's bedroom through the window, to see if the boy had kicked his blanket off as usual, when she felt a sharp, throbbing pain in her temple. Of course. Another eco-problem. She wondered what it was this time. An explosion of a nuclear power plant? A burning forest? A broken dam?

x

Upon seeing in her crystals a pierced tanker ship, out of which oil flowed abundantly, Gaia shook her head sadly. Were humans really unable to comprehend what precautions meant?

"Wake up, o Captain, my Captain" she said, holding out her hand towards the floor, under which there was a large crystal, in which Captain Planet stationed.

"Have you called me?" he asked a moment later, materializing beside her.

"Yes, I have. Look" she replied, showing him the leaking vessel.

"Eco-villains or an accident?

"An accident, I think. The children probably could handle this, but I don't have the heart to wake them up in the dead of night."

"Aren't you a bit overprotective?" the Captain looked amused. "Okay, okay, I'll deal with it; let them sleep" he added, noticing the disapproving look in his friend's eyes.

"Thank you. You've never failed me" this time, Gaia smiled.

"It's my job" the Captain remarked perkily. "Speaking of which, I'd better be off; I've got a lot to do."

"Then go, Planet."

The Captain saluted and with a whistle of air, flew off towards the open sea. A moment later, Gaia heard the sand crunch under two bare feet, and a semi-childish voice, calling her name.

"What happened, Ma-Ti?" she asked, hugging her favorite, who'd run into her open arms. "Why aren't you sleeping?"

"I cannot sleep. I am afraid that Skumm will find us here and poison us..."

Gaia sighed softly; then, she sat on a bench, which Wheeler had recently made for Linka, and beckoned for Ma-Ti to join her. She wasn't all that surprised when, instead of sitting next to her, he climbed into her lap and embraced her waist; and frankly, she didn't mind. She loved her Planeteers more than her life and knew they felt the same for her, but Ma-Ti still was her most cherished darling boy. Being the youngest of the five of them, he cuddled up to her whenever he wanted, and unlike the others, wasn't afraid it would make him look silly. Sometimes, she just wished her elder children were this at ease with her outside the one-on-one interactions.

For a long while, the only sound was the one of the waves, rolling into the island's shores.

"You don't have to be afraid of Skumm" Gaia said at last, wiping away a tear running down the boy's cheek. "At least as long as you are on Hope Island. Don't forget Skumm's element is the city, and a polluted one at that, so he wouldn't stand a long contact with the micro-climate around here. Besides, if he did come here, Captain Planet and I wouldn't even let him TOUCH any of you, not to mention poison you."

"Really?"

"Really. As long as at least one of us is alive, you all are safe."

The tone of her voice obviously relieved Ma-Ti, who relaxed and trustingly rested his head on her shoulder.

"But, Gaia" he spoke after a while "you two are immortal..."

Gaia pried him off herself with a gentle smile.

"If you mean that we can't die of natural causes, then yes. But how about we finish this chat tomorrow? It's late; you should be off to sleep."

"Not yet" the boy firmly grasped her hand and yawned. "Will you tell me a bedtime story?"

"Aren't you a little too old for this?"

"Pleeease..."

"All right; but when I'm done, you go back to bed right away, okay?"

"Uh-huh" Ma-Ti muttered, burying his nose in Gaia's gown.

"So: once upon a time, far away from here, lived a little boy..."

About halfway through the story, Ma-Ti nodded off. Seeing this, Gaia leaned over him and kissed the top of his head. They shared a truly unique bond. Even on the very first day, before she gave up on keeping her protégés at bay and let herself to love them, he'd been looking at her with so much trust that the majesty barrier, which Wheeler had previously weakened by demanding explanations right away, fell all apart. Besides, knowing that Ma-Ti had been tragically orphaned as a six-year-old kid, and therefore longed for warmth and fondness, made her unwittingly treat him more gently than she did other Planeteers.

But why all the humans couldn't have hearts as kind as this child's...? Oh, right. Because of Zarm. At the memory of the Planeteers' meeting with him, she shivered. She didn't want to think what would have happened if Ma-Ti also had believed his fake kindness. Ironically enough, she was a bit grateful to Zarm nonetheless. Hadn't it been for that incident many thousands of years ago, she might have never met 'her' children; and if he hadn't tried to make them turn away from her, she certainly wouldn't have realized just how much she cared about them, and wouldn't now have such a close relationship with them...

Then, she realized Ma-Ti was slightly trembling from the cold. She needed to put him to bed as quickly as possible. However, the situation became a bit problematic. Whenever Gaia tried to free herself from the boy's grip, he just grasped her hand tighter. Thus, there was no way she could take him in her arms and stand up, not to mention carry him to bed. Sure, technically, she could simply use her powers to send him back, but she didn't want to do that. If he woke up and saw he was alone, he'd get scared and run to her again. That only left using her free hand to hold him close, lest he got cold, and making plan after plan of getting him to any place sheltered from the wind. Unfortunately, each one had one weak point: Ma-Ti wouldn't let go of her hand.

Finally, Gaia got her brilliant idea. She closed her eyes and focused.

"Captain, my Captain, answer me" she said softly.

"_Roger, Gaia_" she heard a moment later in the noise of the water.

"When you're done, I'll need your help with one more thing" she whispered back, lightly rubbing her precious boy's arm.

"_What happened?_" the Captain got worried.

"This time, nothing terrible. You'll understand everything when you come back to the island."

"_Okay, I'll be there soon. Over and out!_"

Gaia smiled. Captain Planet could always make her brighten up, despite – or perhaps BECAUSE of – hardly ever being completely serious and mature.

x

Upon seeing Gaia, immobilized by Ma-Ti, Captain Planet almost burst out laughing.

"So THIS is the thing that I am to help you with?" he asked once he'd finally gotten himself under control, and gave her an amused look. "The mighty Spirit of Earth is unable to lift a thirteen-year-old kid?"

"Try it yourself" in Gaia's voice, a hint of mockery could be heard.

The Captain put his hands under the boy's knees and back, only to discover he couldn't pull him away from Gaia.

"He's holding you strong" he stated with surprise.

"I told you I needed help" was the answer.

"But what do you think I should do? I can't pry him off you by force, unless I want to hurt him."

"There is another way. You have to move us both onto his bed; I'll take care of the rest."

"Whatever you say, Gaia" the Captain replied, lifting her like a feather.

He was about to take off, when Gaia elbowed him lightly in the chest.

"No flying" she said firmly. "I don't want him to freeze to the bone."

"Okay... Mother" the Captain replied and obediently (maybe even too obediently!) started walking towards Ma-Ti's hut. "But you do realize Wheeler would've died laughing if he saw us right now?" he added after a moment with a mischievous smile.

For a second, Gaia looked like she were about to suffocate with a stifled laugh. The Captain, however, knew that in her case, there was no need to be worried of it; after all, despite her ability to take on a solid form, she still was a spirit, which came with immortality.

"You're matchless, Captain" she declared when she'd finally calmed down.

"Thanks. Is this a new thing for you?" he answered in a playful tone. "Okay, the ride's over; we're already there" he added, walking into the hut and putting Gaia on Ma-Ti's bed.

Gaia covered the boy with a blanket, carefully placed a pillow under his head and disappeared, only to materialize at Captain Planet's side after a moment.

"Neat" he said admiringly.

"Thank you" she replied "but I wouldn't have succeeded without you. I've never thought that children his age could be so strong."

"Neither have I" the Captain admitted. "I wonder what else we don't know about him and the others."

Then, Ma-Ti curled up, embraced the pillow and buried his nose in it, muttering something incomprehensible. Gaia walked up to him noiselessly and rearranged the blanket.

"Shouldn't we leave before he wakes up?" Captain Planet asked.

Gaia didn't answer; she sat beside Ma-Ti and put her hand on his head. When a soft, golden glow surrounded them, the Captain realized she'd used the Heart power. After a while, the boy settled down.

"NOW we can go" said Gaia, reappearing beside the Captain.

x

"Have you noticed you treat these kids as if they were yours?" the Captain asked, as soon as they were back in the Crystal Chamber.

Gaia nodded without saying a word.

"But you do realize this won't last forever, right?" the Captain insisted.

"Yes. But you can't convince me you're indifferent to them.

"Good point; I'd lie if I claimed so."

There was a pause. After a while, it was broken by Gaia's sigh.

"You know why Ma-Ti held onto me so tight? He was afraid of Skumm's revenge" she said softly. "And he only felt safe with me."

"I told you" the Captain chuckled. "You act as if you were the mother of the five of them, and an overprotective one at that."

"They all still are almost children. Sometimes, I even wonder if they really are mature enough for their duties" Gaia replied, deep in thought.

The Captain took her hand and looked her straight in the eye.

"Gaia" he spoke seriously "believe me, you worry without need. Hadn't they been ready for being Planeteers, the rings wouldn't have gone to them of all people; I'm sure you're aware of this. And you must have noticed that they're doing very well even without my help. To be honest, sometimes I even have an impression that they rescue me more often than I do them."

After the last sentence, he made such a face that Gaia laughed.

"I guess you're right; I tend to be overprotective" she admitted finally.

"Especially towards Ma-Ti" the Captain said, winking at her knowingly.

"He's the youngest" Gaia shrugged slightly. "He needs a mother more than the others do."

"Right" the Captain smiled in amusement. "Have you ever thought that you, in turn, could have needed such a beloved child, so you'd stop being sulky with the humanity?" he asked suddenly, lifting an eyebrow.

Gaia looked genuinely surprised.

"I've never thought of it that way" she admitted after a while.

"Well, you do have a few hours left before the kids wake up" the Captain remarked, winking at her again, and bowed to her courteously. "The power is yours" he added before disappearing in a brief flash of light.

* * *

**Next one will be a Gi-centered ficlet.**

**Meanwhile, reviews will bewelcome.**

**Regards,**

**VerMa.**

**PS – Of course, Zarm showed up about once per season (except the sixth one), but his second appearance was AFTER the episode this story refers to.**

**VM**


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